A scouting report on recruit Rakim Lubin

Buford (Ga.) High School coach Allen Whitehart took time out of his relaxing Sunday afternoon to talk about Rakim Lubin.

Lubin, a 6-foot-8, 245-pound forward, gave UConn a verbal commitment on Saturday during his official visit to Storrs.

“It’s a great fit,” Whitehart said. “I think he can do very well there.”

Here’s a rundown on Lubin:

-- Whitehart’s scouting report: “He’s pretty agile. He runs well. He’s a good athlete. He defends well in open space. He’s so strong. He’s physically college ready now.

“…Strangely enough, he’s got a pretty good face-up game. If you get him on the block, you’re going to foul him or he’s going to score. He finishes extremely well.”

He added the Lubin is very soft-spoken and humble.

-- Lubin spent the first three years of his high school career at Gadsden City in Alabama before transferring to Buford, which is located on the north side of Atlanta. He has family living in the Atlanta area.

-- Whitehart added that Lubin had never lifted weights before coming to Buford. He’s added about 12 pounds of muscle since changing schools.

-- Recruiting interest in Lubin declined over the summer because he injured his back and missed most of the July summer basketball circuit.

“He had a down summer,” Whitehart said. “He hurt his back early in the summer and he had been pretty sought after until he got hurt.”

-- Memphis, Marquette and Auburn were some of the schools recruiting Lubin.

-- Lubin told Whitehart that he liked the UConn coaching staff’s attention to detail with athletics and academics. His mother, Sabrina, also went on the trip.

“They will monitor him and help him achieve his goals,” Whitehart said.

-- Whitehart is very familiar with the UConn basketball program. About four years ago, he traveled to Storrs along with one of players, Lorenzo Brown, to attend Jim Calhoun’s Elite basketball camp. Brown wound up at North Carolina State.

“I was very impressed,” Whitehart said.

The Buford coach heard Kevin Ollie speak at the camp. He also knows Jeremy Lamb.

“I told Lorenzo that he’ll be the head coach one day,” Whitehart said of Ollie. “(I told him) just listen to how passionate he is about the university and how he talks about intangibles and character and the way things should be done.”